Games like Tuesday’s afternoon debacle in Toronto are the hardest games to write game recaps for. The game was such a disaster so early on that it makes it nearly impossible to judge all of the components of the game objectively.

With a couple break downs early and Scott Darling having nothing for an answer, the 4-1 period felt like the complete disaster that it was on the scoreboard, but I think the reality is that attention to detail early with no help from the last line of defense paints the worst possible picture.

So already mentioned is Scott Darling’s play. Put simply, he got off to a rough start, at least survived in the middle and then suffered round two when the Leafs piled on late. Important to note is that the team in front of him was not good either. Noah Hanifin had another relapse game defensively. Justin Faulk continued to struggle. And the defense in front of Darling was porous throughout most of the game. When you couple that with a minus four night for special teams including another shorthanded goal against, it becomes a poster for the vast majority of all of the bad stuff from the 2017-18 season thus far. And though some players featured more prominently than others, no one is exempt in a game like this.

Notes from the Carolina Hurricanes 8-1 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs

1) Scott Darling

The telltale sign that Darling does not have it is his inability to track the puck and/or react. Both of the first two Leafs’ goals just flat beat him. Then the third featured a juicy rebound on a decent save followed by his inability to find a puck that he had for a moment at least. Of the eight goals, four just flat beat him with good but savable shots. Two more were lose change type rebounds. And then there was the bank shot off Faulk and the five hole finish on the pretty centering pass to Bozak from Marner. Put simply, he just did not have it from the very beginning.

2) Peters decision to leave Darling in

As much as Darling looked like a deer in the headlights on most if not all shots in the first period, Coach Bill Peters matched that level of deer in the headlights when he decided to leave Darling in for the second period. I have no idea what Peters was thinking. The first period was not the ‘partly bad luck’ variety shellacking. Darling just was not on, and he was visibly frustrated on both the third and fourth goals. At that point, I think the only decision was whether or not to let him finish the period before relieving him before things got out of a hand. And get out of hand is exactly what happened in the third period with four more goals including another of glove whiff variety. I guess the thinking was that maybe he would recover and salvage something from the start and the idea that Peters was showing confidence in him. But for as much as Darling just looked frozen for the batch of goals in the first period, I felt like Peters was taking a huge risk that things became worse with very little to gain in terms of upside.

3) Justin Williams with his finger on the pulse

For the third time this season, Justin Williams dropped his gloves amidst a Canes collapse. The other two did not actually result in fights because the referees stepped in, but in making a statement on Tuesday afternoon, Williams did pick up a fighting major. I am torn on whether fighting helps at all in situations like this, but I think the one thing it does do is make a statement that this is not okay. And for a young Hurricanes team that oftentimes seems unable to dig out from duress, I think that in itself is meaningful. I am not suggesting that the Hurricanes young skill players need to start dropping the gloves when things go awry, but there does need to be a very clear sense of urgency, some tension and a push that goes with it. What happened on Tuesday can NEVER be comfortable or okay.

4) Noah Hanifin

Though the offensive part of Hanifin’s game continues on an upward trajectory, he continues to put forward intermittent train wreck games. His last was in the San Jose loss. Tuesday’s featured two lackadaisical turnovers that led to odd man rushes the other way and goals against. For as much as Hanifin’s game has developed offensively, nine times out of ten he looks like a deer in the headlights trying things for the first time trying to defend an odd man rush. The first goal saw him turn the puck over and then just keep backing up as Komarov gained speed and stepped into his shot off the rush. The second goal on Hanifin was another puck handling miscue that led to a breakaway.

5) Justin Faulk

The shot that was banked off him and in was more misfortune than anything, but the Bozak goal that saw Marner navigate around Faulk from the side boards as if he was a cone in a drill was something that continues to happen to frequently. Early in the season, it might have been possible to say Faulk was a slow starter and was just not quite up to game speed yet, but now in December it is time to call it like it is. Right now, Faulk lacks the quickness and mobility necessary to be a steady top 4 defenseman at the NHL level.

6) Special teams catastrophe

The special teams dipped to about the same low they hit in allowing two power play and two shorthanded goals against the San Jose Sharks. On Tuesday, the Maple Leafs scored on all three of their power play opportunities, and the Hurricanes were unsuccessful on four power play opportunities and yielded a shorthanded goal to boot. The total was a minus four on special teams for the game.

7) A couple small positives

Sebastian Aho is skating really well right now. With the puck on his stick through the middle of the ice, he is regularly gaining the offensive blue line and more on his own and looking to make plays from there.

Jeff Skinner getting on the board could pay dividends going forward if it helps him find the mid-season scoring burst that he has had in years past.

As bad as it was, the game only counts for one loss. IF the team can rebound with a win in Nashville on Thursday, all will again be right in the Canes world heading into a Saturday home game against the Sabres that could tip the week positive.

Next up is a trip to Nashville to face the Predators on Thursday night.

Go Canes!

15 Comments

katrii
on December 19, 2017 at 6:09 pm

A Toronto massacre or sth like that.

Conservatively thinking coach, known for his bad in-game decisions, didn’t pull the goalie after 3rd goal early in the game. Not pulling the goalie was an unfavour to the team, not giving the team a chance to win.

Darling is bipolar in his job and needs help.

Forwards: Aho, Willy, Lindy and Skinny get a pass. Them I saw fighting. TT was bad (lost puck twice that lead to TOR attack both times and mishit the net in a place where he should have scored plus was sloppy overall) and the rest were mediocre.

D-men: Save what’s left of Faulk and trade him. That’d be a favor for all. The puck is burning in his stick and he doesn’t know what to do with it + he has lost his d-skills. Bad game for Hani, too. Slavin is a shadow from his past. Pesce stupid penalty.

Btw, Aho was centering Lindy and Skinny at some point.

After Anaheim game I lost my belief in a playoff spot (because I believe none of the 5 metro teams that supposedly go to playoffs will quit) and it helps just to watch hockey bc it is hockey. Next game for me will be on Dec 27th since I take a lil Xmas vac. Merry Christmas to all readers of this site and horns up! There will be a day when the Canes play winning hockey!

Absolutely inexcusable for Peters not to pull Darling after goal three. It was blatantly obvious he didn’t have the same level of focus he had the last game. The fact that our head coach ignored that is beyond comprehension. Then he allows salt to be rubbed into Darling’s already wounded pride by leaving him in for four more goals in the third. That is just not done in hockey. You look out for your goalies by showing them respect, even if that means removing them from the game. Would a baseball manager allow a starting pitcher to give up eight homers? It’s not too different of an analogy. My respect for Bill Peters has dropped significantly after this game. The straws on the camel’s back are getting very heavy…

As bad as Darling looked, the entire team did not show up for this game. The coaching staff gets the lion’s share if the blame for an effort like this. Leaving Darling in after the first period is the sign of a coach that does not have any answers.

I was going to go crazy about this game but instead I am doing the exact opposite. The long West coast trip caught up with them. I would have pulled Darling after 2nd goal to see if it sparked the team but other than that the boys were tired you could see it. I am giving them a pass. Every team plays a stinker once in a while.

I don’t see how a win Thursday makes things right. Sure it’s only one loss, but it’s the way we lost. We’ve had several of those deer in headlights losses this year which is the ultimate sign. And raleightj is right, this is exactly why we rarely have nationally televised games.

The team as currently constructed lacks chemistry. We are statistically a great possession team, but with almost no closers and shoddy passing. Even possession teams will score 3+ goals if you give them enough games, but we don’t have the arsenal to do it consistently. All the players know it, the goalies feel it, the coaches know it. I just think GMRF is being too patient. We needed a 1C catalyst and probably could have gotten someone to bridge the gap a few years out (until Aho, Necas and Roy slot as our potential top 3C).

If I were GMRF, I would be calling the other 30 GM’s and start the conversation about our captains, Faulk and Staal. Start delivering some key assets and offload the locker room post-game moping.

Waving the white flag. Bill is like WOULD YOU HURRY UP AND FIRE ME I MEAN COME ON FRANCIS! WHAT DO I HAVE TO DO, STREAK DURING A GAME!?! No one knows how to destroy the confidence from a three game win streak (first of the year! Smh.) quite like we do. Other franchises laugh at us. If Dundon WAS in attendance yesterday, do you really think he’s not having second thoughts? Like jeez… Is THIS what I’m going to get? Embarrassed?

I hope this loss shakes up the team. Sure, many teams have a couple of those throughout the year, e.g. Detroit and Pit has some seriously awful stinkers this season.
The problem is that we have a lot of them, not this huge or noticeable (and certainly not televised nationally), but too many for a team that hopes to contend for a playoff spot. The problem is that RF does not appear to be patient, patience is giving players a chance to grow but making the small moves necessary to motivate them and build a winning team spirit. He appears to be clueless, he doesn’t address the obvious problems with the team, that of chemistry and lack of leadership.

We have the leading AHL scorer (overall and on powerplay goals) sitting down in Clt, when are we going to bring Zykov up?
Ned has been playing good hockey down in charlotte, why not let Darling sit out a game and give him a shot in net, just to keep him motivated? I mean, his goaltending is not likely to be worse than Darling’s.

Ward does not have spectacular numbers for a backup goalie. In his starts he has had two definite stinker games, mixed with few classically Wardy outings.

Why not let Faulk sit out a game and bring up a Checker defenseman? We don’t have anybody obviously knocking on the door, but we have a few pretty solid d-men down in Charlotte.

Walmark is coming back from an injury, but is rapidly improving. Why not bring him up and sit Ryan (Ryan is a great guy, a story of perseverance, but he is not a legit 2nd or third line NHL player).

I know fans tend to have knee jerk reactions, and GMs can make stupid decisions if they are too influenced by the results of a single game, but I think refusing to do anything at all is not the mark of a good GM either.

I agree on Zykov. He should be brought up – he provides a dimension we don’t have (which he already showed in his one full NHL game last season) – net front position on the PP. The worst that can be said about him, if you challenge his speed (as I know Matt has), is that he is a young Bickell.

Wallmark is considered one of the most NHL-ready players anywhere in the AHL.

Did you notice that Ryan got moved to Rask’s wing yesterday? He doesn’t need to play center. Wallmark will be up before long – I hope soon, and not because of an injury.